Arrington's hard work paying off with Patriots

Patriots cornerback Kyle Arrington catches a ball during a joint workout with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Aug. 13 in Foxboro. AP PHOTO

FOXBORO -- We tend to kick around the Patriots' defense for being too much of a passenger in recent years.

The Patriots are carried more often by their high-scoring offense, driven by quarterback Tom Brady.

Yet the Patriots' defensive front seven is solid, anchored by 6-foot-2, 325-pound Vince Wilfork, who entering his 10th season is becoming more recognized nationally for what is established fact in New England. He is the best defensive tackle in the NFL.

Consider what coach Bill Belichick did not say earlier this month when asked to compare and contrast Wilfork and Warren Sapp. The coach did not say it was premature to compare the longest currently serving Patriot defender to a player who 10 days earlier was enshrined in Canton. Rather the coach spoke about the greatness of Wilfork as a player and leader.

Belichick then noted he hadn't coached Sapp, so he "couldn't speak about his specific skills."

But while Belichick preaches "team defense," fans and media dissect New England's D into accountable parts to better focus their concerns on the secondary. Back there, the longest currently serving Patriot is fifth-year cornerback Kyle Arrington, 27, a former practice-squad player who tied for the league lead in interceptions in 2011, but at present is the team's No. 3 cornerback behind Aqib Talib and Alfonzo Dennard.

Which is reassuring.

On Tuesday, Belichick lauded Arrington for having improved "a ton" since 2009 when he was signed to New England's practice squad.

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"Kyle is one of our hardest-working players," said Belichick. "He's been a very dependable and durable player that's been out there a lot."

Belichick put Bob Kraft's dollars behind such kind thoughts when the Patriots in March signed Arrington to a four-year, $16 million contract, including a $6.5 million bonus, to keep him here. "It's nice to really be wanted," said Arrington.

Arrington has not always felt so wanted. It goes back to when he was an "under-the-radar" recruit coming out of Gwynn Park High School in Brandywine, Md. Arrington said Hofstra was his only Division I offer.

His entry into the NFL was getting signed by the Eagles on April 28, 2008, as an undrafted free agent. Over the next 17 months, Arrington was waived four times, twice each by the Eagles and Buccaneers. In 2008, he spent one week on Philadelphia's practice squad and 14 weeks on Tampa Bay's.

What turned his NFL life around?

"Just perseverance. Just a matter of knowing what I was capable of," said Arrington. "Then being a part of such a standout organization from top to bottom."

In his third season with the Patriots, Arrington in 2011 tied Green Bay's Charles Woodson and San Diego's Eric Weddle for the NFL lead with seven interceptions.

Last season he started the first 10 games at right cornerback. When Talib entered the picture and rookie Dennard emerged, Arrington became the slot corner in the nickel defense, though he did return to the starting lineup for the final two regular-season games when Dennard was out with knee and hamstring injuries.

Still, Arrington went from seven interceptions in 2011 to none last season. "You hate to throw gutter balls after rolling a strike," he joked, adding that W's still trump individual stats.

Dennard has not played in the first two preseason games due to an injury and is also facing a charge of suspicion of driving under the influence while he was on probation for assaulting a police officer. He is due back in court in Nebraska on Aug. 27.

Arrington is healthy and ready.

In addition to being the reigning expert in the secondary on the Patriots' coverage schemes, Arrington has been good for jersey sales. He is the first player in team history to have worn three different uniform numbers. Arrington joked he wanted to be a "pioneer," famous for accomplishing something, in the event he didn't do anything else in the NFL.

Arrington was assigned No. 27 when he joined the Patriots in 2009. He switched to No. 24 after its previous wearer, Jonathan Wilhite, was waived in August 2011. No. 24 signified to Arrington a reversal of fortune, since had been assigned No. 42 when he entered the NFL.

Now Arrington wears No. 25, having given up No. 24 to veteran safety Adrian Wilson, signed by the Patriots in March after 12 seasons with the Cardinals. Wilson in return agreed to provide a year's supply of diapers for Arrington's son, Kyle Jr., now 5 months old. Arrington joked his son might already be close to using up his year's allotment.

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